


Site B

by michie1997



Series: Life Finds a Way [2]
Category: Jurassic Park - All Media Types
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-25
Updated: 2018-08-21
Packaged: 2019-06-15 23:11:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 17,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15423726
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/michie1997/pseuds/michie1997
Summary: Four years after the Nublar Incident, Ian and Kerri are swept back into the whole dinosaur mess. Except, this time, things get worse when a buck Tyrannosaurus is let loose in San Diego, and not to mention, Ian's new girlfriend isn't exactly helping matters. IanxOC. Direct sequel to The First Park.





	1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

_1995_

_“_ So, lunch with Dr. Grant and Dr. Sattler? Quite the, uh, busy bee _.”_

_“Well, you were invited but you said you couldn’t make it.”_

_“_ I’ve got Kelly and Evan this weekend, otherwise I would, remember _?”_

_“You know Alan isn’t as bad with kids as he used to be. Quit being moody.” I rolled my eyes, checking the time. “I gotta go, I’ll be back around three or four if you need me. Besides, why are you jealous? Sarah’s coming over.”_

_“_ Sarah and I aren’t, uh, dating.”

_Yeah, right. “Alright, whatever. I’m gonna go now.” I hung up the phone, grabbing my purse. “Rhiannon! I’ll be back in a bit, you better be done with that college work when I’m back.”_

_“Yeah, yeah.” Rhiannon said from the kitchen table as I walked out the door and to my car. I got in, driving to a small diner somewhere in town. After I parked and got out, I noticed people staring at me, some muttering to themselves. Oh, yes, here we are. Dinosaur lady is out in public again, such a fucking shame. She should go hide her head in the sand like an ostrich._

_Good luck with that._

_I walked into the diner, and automatically a blonde wearing a green shirt hurried over to me._

_Ellie looked great, like she hadn’t changed a bit since Isla Nublar. I was confused, however. It was just Ellie._

_“Hey!” She grinned, hugging me. I hugged her back before pulling away._

_“Hey, Ellie, is it just you? Where’s Alan?” I looked confused._

_“Oh, Alan will be here in a minute. I already got us a booth. Come on,” she led me to a booth on the left side of the diner, where three menus were placed. Ellie’s drink of choice, which seemed to be a Sprite, was on the side where only one menu sat. I sat opposite of her, still confused. “So how’ve you been?”_

_“I’ve been alright.” I nodded. “Uh, Ian and I separated.” I shrugged as the waitress came over, looking at me like she couldn’t wait for me to order so she could walk away. I smiled kindly at her. “I’ll have a Dr. Pepper please.” I ordered, and she wrote it down, walking away without a word._

_“When did that happen?” Ellie asked, sipping her drink. I thought to myself._

_“About three months ago? Around March.” I nodded after a second._

_“I’m sorry to hear that. You two seemed like you were crazy for each other.”_

_“Yeah…” I nodded. “Yeah, I thought so too.” I looked at her. “What about you and Alan?”_

_“Oh, we broke up last year.” Ellie leaned on the table, her head resting in the palm of her hand._

_“Really? Why?” My eyes widened._

_“Oh, it was the whole kid thing. Not that he hasn’t gotten better around them, he has. It’s just… You know, I wanna settle down, have a family. It’s hard to have that with someone who doesn’t want to share that with you, you know?”_

_“Yeah,” I nodded. “I understand.”_

_“We’re still friends, but sometimes I miss it. But I met this new guy, his name is Mark and we’ve been dating for about five months now.”_

_I smiled. “Ellie, that’s great. I’m so happy for you.”_

_“Yeah, yeah, he’s a great guy.” Ellie nodded as the ring over the diner door rang. Ellie and I both looked up, and saw Alan walk in. He took off his sunglasses, noticing us not too long after walking in. We stood, going over to hug him, though Ellie’s hug was brief._

_“Ellie, you look good.” Alan smiled at her._

_“Thanks.” Ellie shoved her hands into her back pockets. I hugged Alan next. He looked somewhat changed—his second book after the events of Nublar showed how he felt towards dinosaurs now, and it broke my heart somewhat. Even Evan, who was still a major fan, was bummed about the fact that Alan wasn’t as passionate as dinosaurs as he used to be. His hair was somewhat greyer, and he looked a bit older than he did a couple years ago. Then again, time affected others differently._

_“You look great, Alan.” I smiled a bit._

_“So do you, Kerri,” he said softly._

_“Let’s go sit.” Ellie led us back over to the booth. She sat in her lone spot as Alan and I sat opposite, with me on the inside. Ellie sipped her drink again._

_“So, Alan, how have you been?” I asked. Alan shrugged._

_“Alright, I guess.”_

_“Evan read your second book?” I picked up my menu._

_“Oh? What did he think?”_

_“He was a tad bit disappointed that you don’t love dinosaurs as much as you used to.”_

_“Well, I feel like he would feel the same way after being hunted by a Tyrannosaurus and a pack of raptors,” Alan muttered. I nodded._

_“I told him the same thing.”_

_“So how’s Ian?”_

_“Stubborn as usual.”_

_“They’re separated.” Ellie piped up. Alan looked at me._

_“You’re joking?”_

_“Nope.” I shook my head as the waitress came by, looking annoyed as there was a new person sitting at the table. She waited for Alan to order his drink, and I felt Ellie nudge him under the table with her foot. Alan looked at the waitress._

_“I’ll have an ice water, please.” He said, and the waitress walked off. I sipped my drink. “Do you think it’s going to work out this time?”_

_“Honestly, I have no idea. I’m pretty sure he’s dating Sarah Harding. Apparently, she’s going over to his house tonight.”_

_“Oh,” Ellie raised her eyebrows, messing with the straw in her drink. “That’s a little soon isn’t it?”_

_“It’s his life.” I rolled my eyes._

_“Sarah Harding… Was she the one that came to Costa Rica after finding out about the park?” Alan asked. I nodded._

_“Fiery red hair and a hell of a personality? Yeah.” I rolled my eyes. “The same.”_

_1997_

“Mom. Mom!”

I felt someone shaking my shoulder, waking me out of my sleep. I turned around quickly to see Evan looking slightly annoyed. Once I glanced at the clock, and noticed it was before noon, I realized why.

“What’s up?” I yawned.

“Dad’s on the phone.” He handed the black house phone to me, and I took it.

“Hello?”

“ _Nice to see you up before noon_ ,” I heard a voice joke on the other end of the line. I rolled my eyes.

“What’s going on, Ian, you typically don’t call this early.”

“ _Well, that’s-that’s one of the best hellos I’ve heard in a while_.”

“Don’t be sarcastic. What’s up?”

“ _You’re not going to like what I have to say_.”

I sat up straight. “What?”

[][][][]

“We have to do this now?” I grumbled, tugging on the hem of my shirt, a nervous practice I’ve picked up since Nublar.

“He said now, this was not, uh, not my idea, it was his.”

“Do you even know what it’s about?”

“Nope.”

I looked over at Ian. We both looked like we were in our early forties now—both of us having our forty first birthday earlier this year—Ian had cut his hair short, almost like how he did when we were kids. I hadn’t seen his hair that short since we were ten. I looked down, and noticed his left hand.

“Still wearing your ring, I see.”

“Uh, yeah… You’re still wearing yours.” Ian retorted.

“Why’d you cut your hair?” I changed the subject.

“Huh? Oh,” Ian looked at me, not expecting the subject change, and rubbed the back of his head. “Sarah likes it.”

“Oh, Sarah, huh? Well, for the record, your wife liked it long.”

“Well-well for the record, uh, you’re my _estranged_ wife. I also got a call from my lawyer; divorce proceedings start next Tuesday.”

I felt a pang in my heart. “I can’t wait for that.” I said sarcastically. Ian didn’t meet my eyes, looking for the train.

“Yeah, yeah… neither can I.” He yawned as the train pulled up. We walked over to it, boarding it after it slowed to a stop, and sat in the back. Ian had a magazine in his hand to read, but he didn’t seem to touch it for a moment after sitting down. My eyes met one of a young punk in a trench coat, maybe around Rhiannon’s age. He was smacking on a piece of gum, a smirk on his face. I looked away as Ian didn’t even know he was there. As we were minding our own business, the kid snapped his fingers about four or five times, making us look at him. The smirk was still on his face. After seeing he had gotten our attention, he started over and Ian began to look through his magazine. I looked out the window, trying to ignore him as he sat next to me.

“You’re them, right?”

Ian and I looked over. “Excuse me?” Ian spoke before I could.

“The scientists? The couple? I saw you on TV.” The punk leaned in, the smirk still evident. “I believed you.” He chuckled, sitting back, glancing between the two of us for a second. After that didn’t get him the reaction he wanted, he rotated his arms in an up and down motion, mimicking a large creature’s bite as well as mimicking a roar. He smirked again as Ian and I didn’t give him any reaction except turning away from him. Not too far from us, I could see a couple of older women looking over at us. God knows what they were thinking.

Soon after, we exited the subway, doing our best to hurry away from that punk kid. Ian was walking fast, and to keep up with his pace, I grabbed his arm. I saw him glance at me from the side, and I quickly let go.

“Sorry…” I shook my head. “I’m sorry… You know—I-I just don’t walk fast sometimes.”

“It’s fine.” Ian said quickly, and I shoved my hands in my pockets as he waved down a taxi cab. We got in, and Ian set the magazine to the side as the driver looked at us.

“John Hammond’s home, please.” Ian said, telling him the address soon after. I looked over the window, swallowing hard. I didn’t even want to look over at him. “So, how’s Rhiannon’s college going?”

“Dean’s List.” I said quietly, not looking at him.

“Evan’s summer school?”

“Finished.” I chewed on my bottom lip. I heard Ian sigh.

“Kerri. Listen… Listen, uh, I’m sorry, I-I didn’t mean to snap at you earlier. I was just… Pissed off at that stupid kid…”

“I am too, Ian, but I didn’t take it out on you.” I didn’t look at him.

“I’m sorry.” I heard him sigh and looked over. He was leaning on his window, running a hand through his hair. I furrowed my eyebrows.

“Where’d you get that maroon shirt?” I asked him.

“Christmas gift from Sarah.”

“Oh.” I looked back out the window, and we remained silent the rest of the ride there.

[][][][]

Ian tipped the taxi driver as I walked up to the ornate door of the mansion. I whistled quietly.

“Jesus Christ look at this place.”

“I’m telling you, money is no object to this man.” Ian muttered, ringing the doorbell. We only had to wait a few seconds before a butler came, answering the door.

“Whom shall I tell Mr. Hammond is calling?” He asked politely.

“Uh, Ian and Kerri Malcolm.” Ian answered him. “We’ve been summoned.” The butler stepped to the side, letting us in. Ian let me walk in first, and I heard him thank the butler not too long after. The butler shut the door as we walked into the entryway, a piano playing in the background. I whistled.

“Holy shit this is nice.” I muttered.

“Dr. Malcolm! Kerri!”

I looked up and saw Tim and Lex hurry down the stairs towards us. Good God how those two had grown. Tim was almost as tall as Lex, and Lex was becoming a beautiful young woman.

“Oh, my God!” Ian’s eyes widened as Tim hugged him tightly.

“Hello, Dr. Malcolm! Kerri!” Lex greeted us quietly, hugging me first before going to hugging Ian. Tim hugged me next, squeezing me half to death.

“Hi, kids! Kids!” Ian smiled.

“It’s so great to see you.” Lex smiled more.

“It’s so great to see _you_. It’s so great—look at you.”

“My God, how old are you two now?” I asked them.

“Seventeen and fourteen.” Lex smiled a bit.

“Good Lord…” I shook my head. “Has it been that long?”

“Yup.” Tim nodded his head, smiling. “Um, you came to see Grandpa?”

“Yeah, yeah, h-h-he called us. Do you know what it’s about?” At this, Lex and Tim didn’t exactly react, but them shifting from foot to foot told me everything I needed to know. And it wasn’t good. “I don’t either. This joint’s kinda… creepy, isn’t it?”

I smacked Ian on his arm and heard Tim stifle bit of a laugh. Though his expression soon went back to one of uneasiness.

“Is everything okay?” Ian asked them.

“Well, not exactly.” Lex answered. We looked up as we heard footsteps on the stairs and men talking not too far from where we were. As soon as we looked, we saw a group of people bringing things down from the upstairs.

And, of course, the icing on the cake. John Hammond’s nephew, the king of the weasels, Peter Ludlow.

“Well, Dr. and Mrs. Malcolm. Drs. Malcolm,” he turned away from us, walking over to a table. “Here to share a few campfire stories with my uncle?”

Ian and I approached this weasel, Ian’s hands in his pockets. “You can convince the _Washington Post_ and the _Skeptical Inquirer_ of whatever you want, but we were there. We know what happened, and so do you.” Ian said quietly, his voice calm and almost dangerous.

“Do you actually believe that everyone who chose discretion did so for nefarious motives?” Hammond’s nephew began to sign things on a piece of paper. “Even Lex and Tim?”

“ _Leave_ them out of it. It’s not a game.”

“No, it isn’t. The two of you signed a nondisclosure agreement before you went to the island that expressly forbade you from discussing anything you saw—”

“I didn’t sign jack shit, not even after we got back from the island. It was Ian’s idea to bring me, no one else’s. I didn’t sign a Goddamn thing and you know that.” I hissed, cutting Peter off as I heard Lex and Tim leave us.

“Oh, Mrs. Malcolm, getting a little defensive I see,” the nephew smirked at me. “You both violated that agreement.”

“Yeah, _I did_ , _she didn’t_ , and you lied.” Ian hissed at him. “You twisted the facts surrounding the deaths of three people. And you stuffed misinformation down the public’s throat, which made both of us look like nuts, hasn’t been so good for our livelihoods—”

“We made a generous compensatory offer for your injuries.”

“That was a payoff and an insult.” Ian’s voice rose the angrier he got. “And when you spin reality, when you cover up evidence, it hurts. It ruins more than just my reputation and my wife’s reputation. It hurts—”

“As I recall—As I recall, your university for your selling wild stories to—”

“I didn’t sell anything, never took a cent, and I told the truth. We both did.”

“Your versions of it.” I could see Ludlow was restraining himself from rolling his eyes.

“There aren’t any versions… of the truth. And I’ll tell you something, InGen can keep spewing out—”

“InGen is my responsibility now, Doctors, and I will jealously defend its interests.” The nephew looked over at us.

“Excuse me?” I furrowed my eyebrows, confused.

“You heard what I said, Dr. Malcolm, I didn’t stutter.” Ludlow put his pen in his suit pocket, smirking at me.

“Your responsibility?” Ian inquired. “What about Mr. Hammond?”

The weasel made his way over. “It is our board of directors which I must look in the eye, not my uncle. Really, you two must trust me. These problems of yours are about to be rendered moot. In a few weeks’ time, they’ll be long forgotten.” He walked past us, patting my estranged husband on the arm. Ian grabbed him by his elbow.

“Not by me. Not by my wife.” He said quietly.

“Estranged wife isn’t it, Dr. Malcolm?” the nephew smirked. “Careful,” he added, removing his elbow from Ian’s grip. “This suit cost more than your education.”

And with that, Peter Ludlow left. I looked at Ian, who looked absolutely pissed off.

“Still wanna go see John?” I asked him quietly.

“We’re here; might as well.” Ian muttered as we made our way upstairs.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

_1995_

_For some odd reason, Alan and I stayed in contact more than Ellie and I did after that lunch. Where Ellie called at least once a week, Alan and I played phone tag every few days before being able to talk after both of us stopped working for the day. We talked for at least an hour while I cooked dinner and talked about just random shit, catching up on each other's lives and what each of us were up to. About a couple months after talking, we made plans to meet back up when he got back from Montana._

_Just us._

_It wasn't a date, per se, but it was just us and I was a bit nervous. I believe it was more of the fact that, even though we were separated, Ian and I were still married. But, we had been separated for about five months at this point, I suppose it wasn't that big of a deal._

_I met Alan at a local restaurant not too far from where I lived. Rhiannon was off with her boyfriend that night, and probably wouldn't be home until morning—she was a grown woman at this point, I couldn't tell her what to do—and Evan was staying at his friend's house, which meant I was going to be alone that night anyway._

_I finished my final touches on my make up—which wasn't a lot, just a bit of eyeliner and some lipstick—in my car, getting out and walking inside. I looked around, waiting to get seated. I was a little early, as we were supposed to meet at seven and it was about 6:50ish, somewhere around there._

" _Hello, ma'am." A hostess walked up for me._

" _Hi." I looked over at her, smiling a bit. "Uh, booth for two please." I said politely. The hostess nodded._

" _Booth?" She grabbed two menus and some silverware. "This way." The young woman smiled kindly, walking over towards the right—which just happened to be the non-smoking section and I was_ forever  _grateful for that. I sat down, taking my menu from her as she sat the other one down. "Someone will be here to help you shortly." She smiled._

" _Okay, thank you." I nodded as she left my side. I looked around more, glancing at my watch nervously. Not going to lie, I had developed a little crush on Alan, and I was more than excited to jump at the opportunity to go out a night where it was just us. I loved Ellie, she was sweet, and I considered her a great friend, but I obviously didn't roll that way, first of all. And, secondly, I didn't mind getting to know Alan better. I kept looking around until I saw him enter. The hostess walked up to him and I saw them exchange a few words, and I stood, waving at him. Finally, Alan noticed me, and he held up his hand, as if he was waving but not, a small smile tugging at his lips. He started over to where I was, and I met him halfway. "Hey," I smiled more._

" _Hey, Kerri, you look great." Alan smiled._

" _Thanks, so do you." I hugged him for a moment before pulling away. "Let's sit." I motioned to the booth, sitting down after that. Alan sat opposite of me. "So what've you been up to in Montana?"_

" _Just digging. You're not going to believe this—we found a full T. rex skeleton." I saw his light up just the tiniest bit. While he wasn't in love with dinosaurs much anymore, I could still see the passion he had for them._

" _Thank God that one was dead, huh?" I joked a bit, and then thought for a second. "Do you get anyone trying to be a wise guy up at those digs?"_

" _Yeah, some of them. Mostly young kids who just think they're funny." Alan rolled his eyes, looking at his menu._

_I looked at my menu. "It wouldn't be funny if they were there." I sighed. "God, I hate being the biggest laughingstock in America."_

" _No, I think that title belongs to OJ Simpson. People are still talking about that Bronco chase."_

" _That's because it was insane. Ian and I watched every minute of this. I remember my mother called and she was like, "Do you see this shit?"" I laughed quietly. Alan chuckled a bit, as I set down my menu._

" _Yeah, Ellie and I watched that chase too."_

_We chatted about a few more things throughout the night, mostly avoiding Isla Nublar and that whole incident. When it came time to leave, Alan walked me out to my car._

" _I had fun tonight," I told him, leaning on my driver's side door._

" _I did too." Alan gave a half smile. "It was nice getting to actually know you outside of that whole Nublar fiasco."_

" _You too." I grinned. We sat in silence for a while before I spoke again. "How often do you think about it? Nublar?"_

" _There are days where I can't get it out of my head… You remember the sounds those raptors made?"_

" _Oh, all too well." I nodded. "I still have nightmares."_

" _They're so smart, raptors are. As terrifying as it was, it was interesting to see them communicate."_

" _You mean talk about who was dinner and dessert?" I joked a bit, my eyebrow cocked. Alan shrugged slightly, shifting his weight to his left foot._

" _Yeah, yeah I guess so." He said. "But it was still interesting. It just shows how intelligent they are."_

" _And terrifying." I added. Alan nodded._

" _And terrifying." He repeated._

" _Anyway," I clapped my hands once. "Besides all of this, we should definitely do this again sometime." I smiled a bit, initiating another conversation._

" _I'd like that." Alan ran a hand through his hair. "I'm scheduled for another Montana dig in a few weeks, maybe we could get together a couple times before then?"_

" _Just let me know when." I smiled more, and I swore I saw Alan blush ever so slightly. "Call me tomorrow?"_

" _You know it."_

_1997_

Ian knocked on the door of John's bedroom, and a "Come in, come in," came from the other side. Ian opened the door.

"Ladies first." He said quietly, though I could still hear the frustration in his voice. I walked in, smiling politely at John Hammond, who was in his bed. Beside his bed, he had an IV with two bags with fluid in them.

"Hello, John." I put my hands together as Ian walked in, not saying a word. He and John looked at each other, Ian giving him a look of a mix of what seemed to be annoyance and anger.

"Hello, Kerri. Ian." He greeted us.

"Hi." Ian said dryly. John sighed, shaking his head, knowing that any pleasantries wouldn't get him anywhere with the attitude that Ian had at this moment. He looked away from us, and out the window.

"You were right, and I was wrong, there. Did you ever expect to hear me say such a thing?" He looked back over at us. "Thank God for Site B."

"What?" I furrowed my eyebrows.

"Site… B?" Ian stared at him.

"Isla Nublar was just a showroom, something for the tourists." Hammond explained. "Site B was the factory floor. That was on Isla Sorna, 80 miles from Nublar." He sat up as Ian approached him, slowly. "We bred the animals there, and nurtured them for a few months, and then moved them into the park."

"Oh, really? I did not know that." Ian responded. I honestly could not tell if he was being sarcastic or not.

"Now, after the accident in the park, Hurricane Clarissa wiped out our facility on Site B. Call it a… an act of God."

I walked over, standing next to Ian as John spoke.

"But we had to evacuate, of course," Hammond continued. "And the animals were released to mature on their own." John smiled at Ian. ""Life will find a way", as you once so eloquently put it. And by now, we have a complete ecological system on the island, with  _dozens_ of species, living in their own social groups without fences, without boundaries, without constraining technology. And for  _four years_ , I've tried to keep it safe from human interference."

"Well, that's right, that's right. I mean, hopefully, you've kept this island quarantined, uh, and contained. But I'm in shock about all this. I-I mean that they're… still alive. Uh, you bred them lysine-deficient."

"I was just about to say. John, that's completely insane. It doesn't make any sense on how they've been able to survive this long." I added.

"Yeah-yeah, shouldn't they have kicked after seven days without supplemental enzymes?"

"Yes!" John grinned. "But, by God, they're flourishing! That's one of the thousand questions I want the team to answer."

"Team?" Ian and I asked in unison.

"Yes. I've—" John tossed the covers off of himself, beginning to get up, grunting with the effort. Ian helped him out of the bed, and I helped him stand. "I've organized an expedition to go in—thank you—and document them." He grabbed his cane. "To make the most spectacular living fossil record the world's ever seen." He made his way over to his desk, and Ian and I followed.

"Wait a minute, go in and document? W-what-what do you mean, like with people?"

"You wouldn't document it any other way." I rolled my eyes.

"Yes. The animas won't even know they're there. Very low impact. Strictly observation and documentation." John walked behind his desk, over to his computer. "Our satellite infrareds show that the animals are  _fiercely_ territorial. The carnivores are isolated in the interior of the island, so the team can stay on the outer rim." He saw the look on our faces and shook his head. "Don't worry, I'm not making the same mistakes again." Hammond reassured.

"No. You're making—You're making all new ones." Ian covered his face with his hands. "Uh," He chuckled, though he wasn't amused. He was just surprised and taken aback. "John, wh-wa-wait—okay, so there's another is-island with dinosaurs—no fences this time—and you want to send people in, very  _few_ people, on the ground, right? And who are these five lunatics they you're trying to con into this?"

"Well," John seemed taken aback by Ian's demeanor. "It was difficult to convince them as to what they were going to see, and in the end, I had to use my checkbook to get them there. But, uh, there's Nick van Owen, who's a video documentarian," he handed Ian the first file. Ian took it reluctantly. "And Eddie Carr, who's a field equipment expert. Uh, we have our paleontologist, and I was hoping that perhaps… you two might be the fourth and the fifth." Hammond looked over at me. "At first, I was hoping to get Alan as the paleontologist to go on the trip, but he outright refused. Then I thought, perhaps," he handed me my file. "You could convince him. And then afterwards I heard the news, and that idea went out the window."

"Sorry about that," I rubbed the back of my neck, while Ian looked more confused than ever.

"News? Uh, what news? I didn't hear any news."

John looked at him. "Don't tell me that you, Dr. Malcolm, had no idea that Dr. Grant and Kerri here were an item for quite a few months."

Ian stared at me. "You dated Alan?"

"Yes." I nodded.

"Our Alan? Alan Grant?"

"Yes, Ian." I snapped. "You're dating Sarah so why should it matter, right? Divorce proceedings on Tuesday, correct?" I hugged my file to my chest, glaring at him. John quickly cut us off from arguing anymore.

"Now, look," he interrupted us. "We've been on the verge of Chapter 11 ever since that accident in the park, and there are those in the company who wanted to exploit Site B in order to bail us out." He said as we walked around his desk. "They've been planning it for years, and I've been able to stop them up until now. But a few weeks ago, a British family on a yacht cruise stumbled across the island, and their… wee girl was injured."

"What happened? Is she okay?" I asked, my eyes wide.

"Oh, she's fine, she's fine. But, uh, the board has used the incident to take control of InGen from me." He walked towards his bed. "And now, it's only a matter of time before this lost world is found and pillaged. Public opinion is the one thing that I can use to preserve it, but in order to rally that kind of support, I need a complete photo record of those animals, alive, and in their natural habitat."

"So you went from capitalist to naturalist in just four years. That's—That's something." Ian looked around, and I saw him suppress the urge to roll his eyes. Hammond waved us over, and he took our hands in his, looking us dead in the eyes.

"It's… our last chance at redemption."

"I understand that, John." I nodded.

"John," my husband looked at him, shaking his head. "No." I saw the look on John Hammond's face. It was as if he was punched in the gut. "Of course, uh, no, and…" Ian took a deep breath. "I'm gonna contact the other three members of your team, and I'm gonna stop them, uh, from going." Ian looked at me. "And I'm not going, so you're not going either."

I scoffed. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me."

"I'm sorry, Ian, I know my father has been dead for about seventeen years, but  _who_ exactly named you the boss of me?" I scoffed again. "I'm forty-one years old, and I will do as I goddamn well please." I looked over at John, and back at Ian, who looked like he was about to argue. "And I'm going."

"Kerri are you  _nuts_?" Ian gaped at me.

"No. I'm doing this for my children— _our_ children. For Alan, Ellie and her new husband. For her future children. For  _us_." I paused for a moment before continuing. "For Kelly. For everyone who thinks we're crazy, so we can prove them wrong. This is our chance, Ian. We have to do this."

"Kerri, uh… You can go all you want if that's what you really want to do. But you have to remember, I'm staying here for our children, so  _I can be here for them_ and not wind up dead on some remote island in-in-in, uh, Costa Rica. Who's the paleontologist, by the way?" Ian walked over to the desk.

"Uh, she-she came to me, I want you to know this." John started.

Ian turned on his heels, facing him. "Who did?"

"Leave it to you, Ian, to have associations, affiliations, even liaisons, with the best people in so many fields."

Ian gaped at him. "You didn't contact Sarah?"

"Paleontological behavior study is a brand-new field, and Sarah Harding is  _on that frontier_."

"No—" Ian began looking through the file.

"Her theories on parenting and nurturing amongst carnivores have framed the debate." As Hammond made his argument, he saw Ian looking around frantically. "What are you doing?"

"Wh-Where's your phone?" Ian tossed the file to the ground, picking the phone up, and putting it up to his ear.

"It's too late. She's already there." Ian faced him, hanging the phone up. "The others are meeting her there in three days."

Ian sat on the desk, taken aback. "You sent my girlfriend to this island  _alone_?"

""Sent" is hardly the word, she couldn't be restrained." Hammond picked up his glass of water, walking over to him. "She was already working in San Diego, doing research at the animal park. I mean, it's only a couple hours' flight from there. And she was adamant—absolutely  _adamant_  about—here you are," he gave Ian the water. Ian took it reluctantly. "About making the initial foray by herself." Hammond laughed. "Thinks she's Dian Fossey. "Observation without interference," she said. And she went on and on—well you know how it is. After you were injured in the park, she sought you out. And then she want all the way down to that hospital in Costa Rica to ask somebody who she hadn't seen in a while whether the rumors were true."

Ian took in a deep breath. "Uh, if you want to leave your name on something, fine. But  _stop putting it on other people's headstones, John_." He stressed the last point, standing up.

"Oh, come on. She'll be fine." John reassured, following him out of the room. I followed after them. "She spent years studying African predators, sleeping downwind and all—she knows what she's doing. And,  _believe me_ , the search team will—"

Ian held a hand up, cutting him off. He faced him slowly. "It's not a research expedition anymore. It's a rescue operation, and it's leaving  _right now_. Let's go, Kerri."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

_1995_

_Since that dinner, Alan and I had been going out a few times—twice before he left for the dig, and then the day after he got back. It got to the point to where the kid were noticing it. Evan, now fifteen, and Rhiannon, now twenty, were not so easy to hide things from anymore._

_“So, Mom,” Rhiannon walked up to me, wearing her old Nirvana shirt—something she refuses to throw out since she heard about Kurt Cobain last year. “What’s up with you and Alan Grant?”_

_I looked at her quickly as I was making breakfast before going back to what I was doing. “There’s nothing… up with us. We just enjoy each other’s company.” I shrugged. “He was with me on Nublar, he understands.”_

_“Uh, yeah, but so does-so does Ellie,” Rhiannon stammered, something she inherited from her father. “And, from what I’m pretty sure I remember, Dad was too.”_

_I looked at her. “Do you think I’m cheating on your father or something, Rhiannon, because you might as well come out and just say it.” I snapped._

_“No, I don’t think that. All I’m saying is, uh, Mom, that maybe you and Dad shouldn’t have rushed to get back together like you did.” She raised her eyebrows. “Because now Evan and I are confused as to who you’re with.”_

_“Your father and I are separated.” I said slowly, flipping the eggs. “He’s dating Sarah Harding again, and I’m not dating anyone. Just because Alan and I have gone out a few times doesn’t mean anything. We’re just… spending time together.”_

_“So you’re not dating?”_

_“No.” I shook my head. I saw Rhiannon nod out of the corner of my eye._

_“For the record, Mom, I’m-I’m not mad. I want you to be happy, and I also want Dad to be happy. I just wish I wasn’t so damn confused about all of this.”_

_“Me too, Rhi.” I nodded, making her plate. “So how’s that boy you’re dating?” I said quickly, changing the subject._

_“Who, Clint?”_

_“Yeah, him.”_

_Rhiannon shrugged. “He’s good.” She smiled a bit. “Uh, he’s actually visiting Yellowstone with his parents for a week or so.”_

_“Does he call you?” I smiled a bit._

_“Every night.” Rhiannon grabbed her plate, getting herself a tall glass of milk._

_“You miss him?”_

_“Yeah.” She nodded. “I’m counting down the days until he returns.”_

_I chuckled to myself. “Sounds like you’re in love.”_

_Rhiannon blushed deeply. “Maybe.” She sipped her milk, going to sit down._

_Oh yes, definitely young love._

_1997_

Ian stormed out of John’s home, angrier than I’ve seen him in a while.

“I can’t believe he sent Sarah there by herself. What-what made him even think that was okay?” He ranted, going down the street to hail another taxi.

“Ian—”

“ _What_?”

I glared at him. “For the _record_ , Sarah went there by herself. She’s always been a daredevil in that sense. And don’t you snap at me.”

Ian glared back at me. “And-and that’s another thing, uh, Kerri. Why didn’t you tell me about you and Alan?”

I rolled my eyes. “Because, _Dad_ , it’s none of your fucking business who I’m with. I know you’re with Sarah because she had goo-goo eyes for you in the _fucking hospital_.”

As I rose my voice, I saw people around us beginning to stare. I ignored them, but Ian had a hard time in doing so.

“Uh, Kerri—” He tried to stop me. I refused.

“Another thing, maybe if you didn’t let Sarah around so fucking often, this second marriage could have worked out and we wouldn’t be talking about _another fucking divorce_.” I hailed down a taxi. “ _Taxi_!” The taxi stopped soon after arriving and I got in, leaving the door open for Ian. I looked at him, and he looked at me, wide eyed. “Are you getting in or not?” I snapped at him.

He got in soon after.

[][][][]

“You can’t shave three days off my deadline, expect everything to be ready. I’m not fully supplied, I haven’t field-tested any of this.” A man, Eddie, explained. Ian kept complaining. The two of us hadn’t spoken since the taxi cab ride.

“What’s the point of giving her a satellite phone if it doesn’t work?” He groaned. “What’s the matter with this?”

“Could be anything—could be solar flares, satellite out of sync, maybe she even turned it off.” Eddie explained. He looked at some workers. “I need half air on the tires here, guys.”

“Maybe she doesn’t know how to use it?”

“What, are you kidding? She’s faxed refinements of 50 percent of the plans for this stuff.” Eddie started as Ian banged the phone on a truck, making a metallic clang. “Ow, ow, ow. Don’t do that. Don’t do that. You gotta baby it a little bit. You gotta love it.”

“I’ll love it when it works.”

“It’ll work when you love it. Let me do it.” Eddie took the satellite phone from Ian, who was more than happy to be rid of it.

“Coming along, Eddie?”

“I don’t usually, I don’t like the field very much, but in this case, I can’t resist.”

As they spoke, a yellow van backed into the warehouse and a man wearing one of those French hats walked out, looking slightly annoyed.

“Thanks for the two-minute warning, Eddie.” He remarked, going to the back of his van.

“Nick van Owen.” Eddie introduced the young man to us. “This is Ian and Kerri Malcolm. Nick’s our field photographer.”

“Oh, how do you do?” Ian said, and if he could be any less enthusiastic he’d be dead.

“Ian’s our… Ian. And Kerri’s our scientist.”

“What’s your background? Wildlife photography?” Ian asked Nick as Nick began to unload his bags.

“Yeah. Wildlife, combat, you name it. When I was with _Nightline_ , I was in Rwanda, Chechnya, all over Bosnia.”

“Oh, busy little bee.” I crossed my arms loosely.

“Yeah, I was. Thanks.” He looked at the person on the truck he was loading his stuff onto. “Do some volunteer work with Greenpeace once in a while.”

“Greenpeace? Uh, what drew you there?”

Nick, who was now back at his van, looked up at Ian and smiled. “Women.” He took his other bags to the truck. “Eighty percent female, Greenpeace.”

Ian nodded. “Noble.”

“Yeah, well, noble was last year. This year, I’m gettin’ paid. Hammond’s check cleared, or I wouldn’t be going on this wild-goose chase.” He grabbed his camera bag, putting it into the truck.

“Uh, where you’re going is the only place in the world where the geese chase _you_.”

Before anyone else could say anything, a young girl’s voice could be heard.

“Dad, Dad, Dad, Dad, Dad, Dad, Dad, Dad!”

In rushed Kelly, a grin on her face. She wore a red polo shirt and navy pants, with her worn tennis shoes. Ian grinned, hugging her tightly and spinning her around.  Behind Kelly, Evan leaned on the big metal door, his hair in his face. _Again_. I raised my eyebrows at him, and he ran his hand through his hair, the blonde bangs out of his face for now.

Ian laughed a bit as he hugged his daughter. “Oh, Kelly! My honey.” He set his daughter down as Evan hugged me briefly before going over to his father and tapping his shoulder to get his attention. Ian smiled, hugging him. “Evan, I’m so glad you both found it. What took you so long?”

“My car broke down yesterday.” Evan flicked his hair out of his face. Ian looked at his son.

“Kid, you need a haircut.”

“I’ll get one later.” Evan shrugged. Evan was starting to dress a lot like how Rhiannon used to. He had on a black and white plaid flannel shirt, that had holes in the front of it, and his worn Pearl Jam shirt underneath that. He wore baggy jeans that fit him but had holes and tears in them. On his feet were some black, slowly turning grey, high top Converse shoes and on his left wrist was a leather bracelet. “I honestly don’t mind this.” He shrugged again.

“Since when did you want him to get a haircut?” I piped up.

“Look, I typically don’t mind but his hair’s to his shoulders. He looks like a woman.”

“Facial hair gives it away, Dad.” Evan raised his eyebrows, smirking at his own joke.

“A-Anyways, what took you two so long?” Ian changed the subject.

“Sorry, we couldn’t get a cab.” Kelly explained, hugging him again.

“Sweetie, that’s okay. Uh, now-now listen.” Ian took Kelly’s hands in his, kneeling down to her eye level. Evan got a bit closer, going to listen to what his father had to say. “I gotta tell you both, uh, something. We both gotta talk to you. Where’s Rhiannon?”

Kelly’s smile fell. Evan answered his father’s question.

“She’s out with her boyfriend. They’ll probably be home tomorrow morning.” He shoved his hands into his pockets.

“Okay, uh, well, just come up here so we can-so we can talk.” Ian led the kids up to the upper level of the warehouse, with me following behind.

[][][][]

Kelly, who was sitting down at a desk, spun around in the desk chair.

“I don’t even know this woman.” She looked upset. Ian and I broke the news to the both of them, and Evan was rolling his eyes and shaking his head in the background. Evan could stay home by himself, it wasn’t a problem, he was seventeen. But Kelly was only twelve, that’s a five-year difference. She couldn’t be home by herself, and I knew Evan wasn’t going to want to watch her. He was going to want to go and do his research that he was so interested in. He locked himself in his room half the time doing that, the other half of the time he was playing on his PlayStation.

“What’re you talking about? It’s Karen. You’ve known her for ten years.” Ian handed Kelly a piece of paper. Kelly took it, staring at it.

“She doesn’t even have _Sega_. She’s such a troglodyte.” Kelly rolled her eyes.

“Cruel, but good word use.”

Kelly rolled her eyes, standing up and starting to walk away. “Why can’t I stay with Sarah?”

“Uh, because Sarah is out of town,” Ian followed her, Evan and I behind them. “Karen’s fantastic, though. She said she’d take you horseback riding, to the movies. You’re gonna have a fantastic time.”

“Stop saying “fantastic”.” Kelly sat on a stool, spinning around on it. “Where are you going anyway?”

“Uh, it’s only for a few days, but I wouldn’t be going if it wasn’t-if it wasn’t, uh, really important.”

“Yeah, but, Dad, you’re always leaving to go somewhere.” Evan piped up. “And it’s always important and it’s always for a few days. You wanna know what happened the last time you left? You moved out.” Evan crossed his arms loosely. Ian looked at him.

“It’s not-it’s not like that this time, Evan, and you know that.”

“Sure. Isn’t it bad enough that you’re taking Mom with you?”

“Evan, enough.” I tapped my son on the arm and Evan rolled his eyes.

“We’re your kids all the time, you know.” Kelly piped up. “You can’t just abandon us whenever opportunity knocks.” She crumpled up the paper, shoving it onto Ian’s shoulder. Ian looked surprised at her.

“Gee, that hurts my feelings. Did your mom tell you to say that?”

“ _Dr. and Mrs. Malcolm, downstairs please._ ” Eddie’s voice came over the P.A.

“Uh… You know, kids, I know we’ve had some hard going, but I feel like in the last couple of years we’ve kinda started to work things out. Hasn’t it been getting better?” He handed Kelly the paper back, and Kelly took it reluctantly.

“Yeah, but I want you to crack on me a little bit, ground me or something, send me to my room.” She walked away from us, and Ian followed. Evan followed him, and I followed them.

“Cut the cords to my PlayStation or something when I piss you off.” Evan added.

“Yeah, you never do any of that stuff.”

Ian looked at his two kids, confused. “Well-well, why would I?”

“Well, I do. At least to Evan, Rhiannon’s grown.” I shrugged.

“Yeah, Mom took away my PlayStation until I finished summer school.”

Ian shook his head at the thought. “Well, ‘cause you two turned out to be so beautiful, or-or handsome, and brilliant and powerful and funny and generous?” Ian grabbed a chair, sat in it and turned to Kelly, who was sitting down again. “The queen, the goddess, my inspiration,” and then he turned to Evan, who was restraining to roll his eyes. “My only son, who turned out to be so much better than his old man?”

“ _Dr. and Mrs. Malcolm_.” Eddie’s voice came over the P.A. again, annoyed this time

“We could come with you.” Kelly suggested. Evan stared at her.

“ _We_? You got a mouse in your pocket?” his eyes widened.

“Yeah. We could be your research assistants like I was in Austin—”

“When did you go to Austin?” I furrowed my eyebrows at Ian.

“Last summer.” Ian answered me quickly before turning to his youngest, “This is nothing like Austin.” He said quietly. “Uh—but anyway, you two got your own stuff.” He turned to Evan. “You’ve got your PlayStation and that-that research on dinosaurs and other extinct animals you do—”

“Mainly dinos, Dad, but thanks for noticing.” Evan muttered quietly. Ian looked at Kelly.

“You got your gymnastics competition—”

“Dad—” Evan tried to butt in.

“—You’ve been training for that for months.”

“ _Gymnastics_? I scrubbed out, Dad. I got cut from the team, thanks for knowing.” Kelly got up and started to leave his side again. I patted him on the shoulder.

“Nice going, Daddy-O.”

Ian sat there, surprised for a minute, before standing up and walking over to her. “Oh, I’m sorry, honey. I, uh, know how much that meant to you.”

Kelly, who was leaning on the railing and had her back to her father, turned and faced him. “You like to have kids, but you just don’t want to be with them, do you?” she snapped. Ian walked over to the desk, a hurt look on his face, and put the paper in the desk drawer.

“Hey, I’m not the one who, uh, dumped you here and split for Paris,” he slammed the drawer shut, raising his voice. “So don’t take it out on me.”

“ _Dr. and Mrs. Malcolm, downstairs_.” Eddie’s voice came over the P.A. again. At the remark Ian made, Kelly made a face like she was about to cry. I shook my head, starting towards the stairs again but stopped when Ian stopped to look at his daughter, since he was in front of me and I couldn’t move around him.

“Honey, I’m… sorry. I’m sorry.” He started to walk away from her as I saw Evan go and put his arm around his little sister. “You want some good parental advice, don’t listen to me. Don’t listen to me.”

I faced them, kissing Evan on the cheek and giving Kelly a brief hug. “I promise we’ll be back soon. Uh, if Rhiannon calls, just tell her it was urgent, okay?”

“Sure, Mom,” Evan nodded. I looked at Kelly, cupping her cheek for a second.

“You okay?’

“I’ll be fine.” Kelly nodded. I squeezed her chin lightly before starting to leave them.

“You two be good—Evan—”

“I know, Mom, don’t do anything crazy.”

I smiled softly. “Good. Love you both.” I followed Ian back downstairs. There, I saw him and Eddie chatting.

“…It goes up to where the trees are and keeps the researchers out of harm’s way.” Eddie started to walk off. Ian followed him.

“Uh, actually it’d put ‘em at a very convenient biting height. Um, what’s the time? Do you have the time?”

“Do I have the time? Why?”

“We’re leaving in three hours.”

“Three hours? Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa? Three hours?” Eddie faced him and the two began an animated discussion as I walked off and got into the truck that Ian and I had our stuff in to sit down for a second.

“Jesus Christ, John Hammond, how do you get me into this shit?” I muttered. I heard knocking on my window and I looked over to see Ian, who still looked a bit upset. He motioned for me to roll the window down, and I did so. “What’s up, Father of the Year?”

I saw the hurt still in Ian’s eyes. “Don’t. Don’t start that.”

“Sorry.” I sighed, looking down at my hands. “What’s up?”

“Are you ready for this? At, uh, at all?”

I shook my head. “Nope. I don’t think I’ve ever been ready for this kind of stuff. Now that I know what’s there. These poor people here… They have no idea.”

“Not one clue, not one clue.” He sighed a bit. “Kerri, uh… Look, I’m-I’m sorry about earlier. The way I reacted about you and Alan and—”

“It’s alright Ian.” I said quietly.

“I didn’t mean to-to blow up like that, and I probably shouldn’t have—”

“Ian, it’s fine. We’ve been broken up for a while. It isn’t a big deal.”

“How long were you two together anyway?”

I played with a string hanging off my shirt, not looking at him. “Almost a year.”

“Why’d you break up?”

I looked over at him, shrugging. “Reasons. Not really any of your business reasons.”

Ian rubbed the back of his head. “K-Kerri, uh, I just… I just want you to be happy.” He said quietly. I opened the door of the truck and stepped out, Ian helping me. Our hands lingered together, and I looked him dead in the eyes.

“If you want me to be happy, then you know what to do, don’t you?” I told him quietly, leaving his side. I went to the trailer that we were going to be in for a while, jumping when I saw who was in there. At the same time, Evan and Kelly jumped as well.

“ _Please_ don’t tell Dad.” Kelly begged.

“What, that you’re both stowing away?” I started to raise my voice. Evan’s eyes widened, and he looked like a California skater boy version of his father in that moment, and if it wasn’t completely serious I would’ve laughed. But it was serious, therefore I couldn’t laugh.

“Mom, please.” He begged. “I’m pretty sure I know what you two are doing and I don’t want to miss out—I _can’t_.”

“Evan.” My tone was serious. “Kelly—both of you. I’m going to tell you this _right now_. If you come with us, there is a high, _high_ probability that you could get seriously injured or worse.”

“We’ll be careful.” Kelly whined a bit. “Please.”

“No. Get out of the trailer. Both of you. Now.” I pointed to the door. Evan grumbled quietly, letting his little sister walk out in front of him. I sighed, walking out after them and shutting the door. I watched them leave the area and went back over to the truck.

I should’ve lingered a while longer.

Ian and Eddie were talking again, Eddie getting animated for what seemed to be the millionth time today. As they were talking, Ian looked over at me. We exchanged looks and I looked away after a minute, leaning on the truck. Ian walked over to me after a second.

“Hey, Kerri, uh, Eddie’s got this. You wanna go get something to eat before we leave?”

“I don’t wanna force you to do anything.” I didn’t look at him.

“It’s not-it’s not forcing if I’m asking you.”

I looked at him. “We’d have to make it quick. Like fast food or something.” I shrugged. “Wish we could get some Whataburger or something instead of that nasty ass In-N-Out.”

At this I saw Ian grimace. “God, I hate In-N-Out.”

I smiled to myself. “Remember when I was pregnant with Rhiannon? I was constantly craving Whataburger fries in mayo?”

Ian laughed quietly, making a disgusted face. “That was, uh, that was so disgusting.”

“Thankfully, you got that shit free since you were manager.”

“Yeah.”

We sat in silence for a minute. “So… what did you have in mind?”

“What, foodwise?”

“Yeah.”

Ian shrugged. “I was thinking that little burger joint we used to go to when we first moved out here.”

“Oh,” I smiled a bit. “What is it? Pap’s Burgers or something like that?”

“Yeah, Pap’s.”

“Sure. We got time?”

Ian looked at his watch. “Oh yeah. I wouldn’t have brought it up if we didn’t.”

I nodded. “Let’s go then.”


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

_1993_

_“How’s the leg?”_

_“Oh, it’s great, you can’t even tell that I broke it.”_

_I sat next to Ian on the couch, stroking his hair. We had just returned from Costa Rica, and it still amazed me how we both came out alive. I sighed a bit, getting close to him as he put his arm around me, keeping me close. I placed my hand on his chest, looking up at him. He played with my hair, giving me a small half smile._

_“So were you serious?”_

_“What, just-just now?”_

_I rolled my eyes. “No, you fool. About getting remarried. Were you serious? Or was it the drugs?”_

_“Oh, no, no, uh, no. I was-I was serious. I know you said you wanted to wait, but why wait? We’ve been apart for seven years, let’s-let’s not make it longer.”_

_I cupped his cheek, kissing him, and pulling away after a moment. “I love you.”_

_“I… I love you too.”_

_1997_

“Yeah, uh, just two number ones—”

“Mayo on mine.”

“With mayo on one of them.”

“And what do you want to drink?” the teen behind the register asked. I looked at Ian, who shrugged.

“Uh, a Coke?” he asked me. I nodded.

“Coke works.”

Ian turned back to the cashier. “One Coke and one water, please.”

“15.94.”

Ian handed him his card as I was getting mine out. “Ian, you don’t have to—” I started but he cut me off.

“Ah, no, uh, I asked you out here and I’m paying, so-so put your card away.”

I stared at him, putting my wallet back into my purse. Ian checked the time as the cashier handed him his card back.

“Would you like your receipt, sir?” the cashier asked.

“Oh, no, no, you can trash that.”

The cashier nodded, handing us another piece of paper. “You guys are going to be number 41. Have a good day.”

“Yeah, thanks, you too.” Ian and I left the counter as we were handed our drinks. I sipped mine as we sat in a booth.

“You know you really didn’t have to do that.” I told him.

“I know but, uh, you’re still my wife so,” Ian shrugged, sitting across from me as he opened his water bottle.

“Yeah, well, won’t be long until I’m not.” I whispered. I believe Ian heard me because he looked over at me, taking my free hand that was on the table resting.

“Hey, are you, uh, happy with all we did?”

“You mean like… life wise?”

“Life wise, marriage wise, anything like that.”

I thought to myself, nodding after a minute. “Yeah, I guess so. We got some good memories out of both marriages. I just… I hate that this is all coming to an end. I feel like we shouldn’t be doing this. We’re just going to regret it again.”

“I, uh, think we learned from that.” Ian kept his hand on mine as I struggled to hold back tears. I wiped my eyes with my free hand and I shook my head.

“It really shouldn’t end like this… After all we’ve been through…”

“How did you want it to end?”

I chuckled a bit, embarrassed, shaking my head more. “God, you don’t want to know…”

“I do too.” Ian argued.

“You do not, it’s stupid.”

“Kerri—”

“Number 41!” a voice called our order out. Ian and I looked at each other for a moment before Ian got up.

“I’ve got it.” He left my side. I cried quietly, wiping my eyes.

[][][][]

“Hey, maybe I wanted a burger.”

“What, are you mad?”

Nick shrugged his shoulders. “No. But I do feel a bit left out.” He joked a bit. I smirked at him, patting his shoulder.

“Maybe next time, kiddo.” I went over to the truck.

“Kiddo?” I heard Nick get a slight argumentative tone as I got into the truck to sit down, laughing to myself. About twenty minutes after that, we left and made our way to Isla Sorna.

[][][][]

I was in the passenger part of the boat as everyone else was up on the deck. I leaned on a wall, enjoying my time alone as it gave me time to think. Ian and I had been through so much together, especially these past four years. I couldn’t bring myself to understand why he just wanted to throw all of it away. I wanted to work it out. Even after that night, I still wanted it to work out. I may not have in the moment, but after a while, I realized I did. Am I saying dating Alan was a mistake? No. It was good to date someone else after Ian and I separated; made me feel as if I still had it. That I had what Sarah Harding had.

I was so angry that night. Ian didn’t come home until three in the morning, and then when he did he seemed a bit different. He had already seemed a bit distant not too long after we got remarried, but this was different. It was after I smelt _Exclamation_ that I knew. I never wore that brand. Ever. I preferred _Love’s Baby Soft_ , and I had been wearing it since my high school days. Ian seemed remorseful, but I wasn’t sure if it was before or after I started yelling at him. At that point I didn’t care. I told him if he wanted her so badly that he should just leave. I was yelling at him so loud that both Rhiannon and Evan woke up, peeking their heads over the corner. I had to stop yelling then, and we both tried to hide the fact that we were upset. It didn’t work.

Ian slept on the couch. While he was sleeping, I packed his bags, a bit sloppy but I was so upset at that time that I honestly didn’t care that his shirts were folded the wrong way, or if his pants were wrinkled. I could’ve given a shit less. I still should think that way, but I don’t. Immediately after he left, I felt as if I had been stabbed in the heart and I cried for what seemed like an eternity.

Everything had been going so smoothly. Hell, even the sex was a lot better than our last marriage, for some reason. It seemed as if we were both even more passionate than we had been before, considering what we had been through together. And it was gone in the blink of an eye. Poof.

“Kerri,”

I looked over, noticing Ian. I raised my eyebrows. “Yeah?”

“We’re almost there.”

“Okay.” I nodded. “What, you want me up there with you or something?”

“Well, we’re going to get off of here soon, I just figured that, uh, you might want to go with us.”

I nodded again. “‘Kay.”

Ian went back up to the deck of the boat, and I sighed.

God, I’m so fucking stupid.

[][][][]

“…Does it work any better than your satellite phone?”

“That’s funny.”

I walked up to the deck of the boat to see Ian leaning on the side of it on the railing, next to Eddie, who was assembling some kind of weapon.

“I loaded it with the enhanced venom of _Conus purpurascens_ , South Sea cone shell, the most powerful neurotoxin in the world.” Eddie explained. “Acts within a 2000th of a second, which is faster than the nerve conduction velocity.”

I walked over to where they were and stood next to Ian, though not too close. Eddie continued.

“So the animal’s down before it even feels the—pfft—” he mimicked getting hit in the neck by a dart. “—prick of the dart.”

“Is there an antidote?” Ian asked.

“What do you mean? Like if you shot yourself in the foot? Don’t do that. You’d be dead before you even realized you had an accident.”

I looked up at Ian, who simply raised his eyebrows in return. Before we could say anything to each other, we heard a man speaking Spanish with an urgent tone to his voice. I looked over and saw Nick walking through two trucks, trying to speak to the man who just seemed troubled. The man was followed by a young boy, who I could assume to be his son.

“Espera, espera, un momento,” Nick told him.

“Papá, espérate,” the young boy piped up.

“The guy says that he wants to unload at the shore right here. He won’t go any further up the river.” Nick told Ian, who furrowed his eyebrows. “He’s heard too many stories about this, ah, island chain, and, uh, he wants to drop us off and go anchor somewhere offshore.”

“What kind of stories?” Ian asked. Nick turned to the man, asking him what I’m sure Ian had just asked. The man answered.

“Sí, sí, sí,” Nick turned to us. “He’s heard stories of fishermen, that came too close to the island and then never returned.”

The man began speaking Spanish again, and I looked at Ian.

“I think I know what ate them.” I crossed my arms.

“I think I do too.” Ian said quietly.

“He has the radio, he has the satellite phone.” Nick translated, and the man spoke again. “When you need him, send the call and he’ll be here in two hours.” The man spoke again. “But he will not stay here,” Nick translated. The man put an arm around the boy, keeping him close, speaking again. “He won’t stay anywhere near these islands,” Nick translated again as the man said something else. “They call the islands—” Nick stared at him for a moment before speaking again. “Las Cinco Muertes?”

“Sí.” The man answered.

“What—What does that mean?” Eddie asked.

“The Five Deaths, he says.” Nick answered.

“Oh, boy, that gives me confidence,” I said quietly, running a hand through my hair. I looked at Ian, who looked a little unsettled.

“Walk with me,” he said quietly, walking off. I followed him as we walked to the back of the boat.

“What is it?” I asked quietly. I could tell he was stressed, and I know it had to do something with Sarah.

“It’s this whole thing. The operation, Sarah being out there alone, the-the kids hating my guts, us.” Ian pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Why do you think the kids hate you?” I asked him, looking at the water below us.

“Because of, uh, everything that’s happened between us.”

I looked over at him, shrugging. “Well, I can honestly say they’re not too happy with you right now, haven’t been for a while. But then again, when a parent cheats on the other parent you can’t exactly expect them to be happy with the one that cheated on the other.” My tone got slightly bitter and I turned away from him.

“Look, Kerri, about that, uh… Look, I’m sorry.”

“Uh huh.” I didn’t look at him.

“I am, I wasn’t expecting it to-to happen, but it did, and I can’t take it back.”

“You sound like you regret it.” I kept looking away from him.

“I might.”

I stared at him. “I thought you _loved_ Sarah, Ian. That she was something in life that you happened to be lacking.”

“I never said that. And-and-and I didn’t bring you over here to argue about this.” Ian glared at me, narrowing his eyes slightly. “As of right now, I don’t want Sarah to get hurt. It’s dangerous out there, especially for someone who really doesn’t know what they’re, uh, getting into.”

I faced him completely, crossing my arms. “Do you love her, Ian?” I asked him.

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me.”

Ian rolled his eyes. “I don’t even know why you’re asking me that.”

“Well, you know Ian, I may have dated Alan for a little while and while I did like him, I didn’t love him. Like, lust, and love are completely different things. So I’m going to ask again. Do you love her?”

“That’s, uh, that’s another thing, Kerri. Why didn’t you ever tell me about you and Alan?” Ian asked me. I rolled my eyes.

“I told you why, Ian; it’s none of your damn business who I’m with.”

“It is when we’re married.” Ian snapped at me. I raised my eyebrows.

“Oh, look at Mr. High and Mighty over here! The man who _cheated on his wife_ acting like he’s Mr. Goody Two Shoes.”

“I apologized for it; it was an accident!”

“Oh? So moving out and dating Sarah and probably fucking her on a daily basis is an accident too?” I raised my voice. Something fell not too far from where we were, and Ian and I both turned to see Nick and Eddie listening in. The minute they saw that we noticed them, however, they tried to make it seem as if they were busy doing something else.

“We’re just make sure this… uh… railing right here is clean.” Nick patted the railing. “Yup, spotless. Let’s go Eddie,” he started walking off, Eddie behind him. I glared at Ian again before leaving his side.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

_1995_

_“Get out, get out, GET OUT!”_

_I threw all the throw pillows on the couch at Ian, who held his hands in front of his face to block the throws. “Would you just listen to me for a moment, uh, Kerri, please?”_

_“I’ve done all the listening I want to do, Ian Malcolm,_ out _!” I shouted, going over to the door and starting to open it. I felt someone grab my elbow and Ian turned me around, trying to get me to look at him. “Let me go.”_

_“Kerri, come on—”_

_“I said_ let go _.” I yanked my arm out of his grasp, glaring at him. Ian went to place a hand on my shoulder. “Don’t you fucking touch me.”_

_“Could you just hear me out? Let me explain?”_

_“You don’t need to explain anything, Ian. I know what you’ve been doing. That isn’t my perfume brand, you can’t hide that from me. And if you_ think _you can, then you must think I’m really fucking stupid.”_

_“I don’t think you’re stupid, Kerri, I never have.”_

_I glared at him. “You obviously do, considering you’re trying to hide an affair from me—doing a terrible job at it, too, by the way.” It was here that I started crying, and I saw Ian run a hand through his hair, looking remorseful. “God, Ian, we just had everything back how we wanted it. The kids are doing great in school, Kelly was coming over every weekend, we were picking back up where we left off before everything went to shit. I mean… I… am I not good enough for you? The woman who carried your children? The woman who went with you to every single fucking physical therapy session?” I wiped my eyes. “The woman who helped save you from a hungry Tyrannosaurus rex that would have been_ more _than happy to eat you? Do you know how many fucking times I risked my life for you on that goddamn island, Ian? Three times. Not one, not two, three. I did all of that for you. To make sure you got out of there alive and in one piece. I didn’t care about me. I thought one of us was going to die, Ian, and I wasn’t going to let it be both of us. Our kids need at least one parent. We couldn’t just orphan them like that. Leave them out in the cold with their parents dead? I wasn’t going to let that happen.” I shook my head, crying more. “Maybe I am a fucking idiot, I don’t know. Because you’re obviously not grateful for it.”_

_“I am, Kerri. Please, just-just let me get a word in—”_

_“No. You’re not grateful at all because you wouldn’t be running around with_ Sarah fucking Harding all the time _!” I raised my voice at him._

_“Who says I’m with Sarah all the time?” Ian raised his voice back at me, and I raised my eyebrows, getting an attitude._

_“No one has to,_ Dr. Malcolm _; the perfume says it all!”_

_Ian began to retort back as we heard something fall and land on the ground. Both of our heads turned into the direction of the noise to see Evan on the ground and Rhiannon poking her head out from around the corner._

_“Kids, what-what, uh, are you doing up?” Ian broke the silence._

_“We heard you fighting,” Rhiannon said quietly._

_“Yeah, it woke us up.” Evan added, standing up._

_“We aren’t fighting, honey.” I shook my head._

_“We’re just having a uh-a discussion.” Ian added._

_“Mom, Dad, we aren’t five anymore, okay? We aren’t stupid.” Evan crossed his arms. “We know you’re fighting.”_

_“And we know what about, too.” Rhiannon leaned on the wall._

_“Look, kids, this-this is all going to be resolved in the morning, okay? How about we just go to bed and take it from there.” Ian suggested. Rhiannon and Evan rolled their eyes, walking to their rooms. I started towards my room, but I felt a hand on my shoulder. “Kerri,”_

_“Sleep on the couch tonight, Ian. Don’t touch me.” I didn’t look at him, walking off to the master bedroom._

_1997_

We were now on Isla Sorna, searching for Sarah.

“I built a location sensor into Dr. Harding’s satellite phone,” Eddie explained, looking at a small monitor in his hand. “So, we should be getting a reading.”

“Yeah, I’m so relieved,” Ian muttered.

“Don’t push my buttons, will ya?” Eddie grumbled.

“Our dot is almost on top of her dot, she should be right around here.”

“These trees are so dense, good luck finding her.” I muttered. Ian glared at me. “ _What_?”

“Over—over there.” Nick pointed over Ian’s shoulder. Quite a few feet away, we saw a raggedy old backpack lying on the ground, but the owner was nowhere to be found. Nick, Eddie, and Ian began hurrying towards it while I stayed behind, walking at my natural pace. I wasn’t in any hurry. Dr. Harding was resourceful. And, honestly, I didn’t really care.  
Ian, however, took the lead as he made his way over to the back. He knelt down, reaching inside it and taking out the satellite phone. I finally caught up to them, crossing my arms and putting weight on my left foot. Ian shoved the phone back into the pack, looking up.

“Sarah!” he called out.

“Sarah!” Nick followed suit.

“Sarah!”

“Sarah Harding!”

I saw Ian roll his eyes. “How many Sarahs do you think are on this island? Sarah!”

“Sarah!”

“Hey, Sarah. Where you at?” I muttered, putting my hands on my hips.

“She won’t hear you if you do that.” Nick stared at me. I raised my eyebrows.

“So sorry. Sarah!” I yelled, attitude creeping into my voice.

“You’re don’t like Sarah, do you?”

“I’m not her biggest fan, no.”

“Sa—” Ian began to yell her name out again, but then was cut off by rustling over to our right. Eddie walked over, looking amazed, as we followed him. “What?”

“Something big.” Eddie muttered as rumbling was heard.

“Oh, God,” I grabbed Ian’s free hand instinctively, squeezing it. Not too long after a did so, however, a herd of Stegosaurus made their way out of the brush, bellowing. My grip on Ian’s hand loosened, but he kept his grip on mine.

“Whoa, yikes!” Eddie exclaimed quietly. “Wow!”

One Stegosaurus bellowed behind us, making us jump. Nick began taking photo after photo as Eddie kept watching in awe.

“This is—this is magnificent.” He said. Ian let go of my hand, walking over to Nick.

“Oh, yeah. Ooh, ahh. That’s how it always starts.” My husband said sarcastically. “But then later there’s running and then… screaming.”

Eddie, however, didn’t seem to be listening. “Wow…” he said as Nick took some more photos. Nick then took his camera off, going over to a log and hopping onto it, trying to get a better angle for a photo. Once he realized he couldn’t get it there, he hopped up a bit higher.

That’s when I heard _her_.

“Hey, Nick!” A woman yelled, laughing as Nick almost fell off the log. The redhead got up on the log Nick was on, laughing hard.

“I guess you kinda got the jump on us a little bit, didn’t you, Sarah.” Nick said.

Sarah Harding laughed again. “Yeah.” She stopped, however, once she saw Ian and I. “Ian, Kerri… I never thought in a million years Hammond would get you guys to come here. Especially you, Kerri.” She grinned, laughing again as she made her way over to us. “Hey, Eddie!”

“Hi, Sarah.” Eddie waved at her.

“Got a granola bar or something? I’m starving!” Sarah hopped into ankle deep water, making her way over to us. She stood in front of Ian, grinning like a kid on Christmas. “Those animals that walked by, did you see ‘em? It was a family group—a pair-bond and a sub-adult, long after the juvenile was nest bound. Every egg clutch I’ve seen has got shells crushed and trampled. The hatchlings definitely stay in the birth environment for an extended period of time. That’s _conclusive_. I could put that controversy to rest, if I can just get a shot of the nest.”

Damn girl take a breath.  

Ian held up her backpack, “You haven’t been attacked?”

“Oh, no. That’s, uh, my lucky pack. That’s how it always looks.” Sarah explained.

“Okay, Sarah—” Ian started.

“Is that a Nikon?” Sarah walked over to Nick.

“Yeah, it’s a Nikon.”

“Can I borrow that?” She took Nick’s camera, looking over at Ian. “I’ll be right back, baby. I promise.”

Regardless of what she said to Ian as she was leaving, Ian followed her anyway. Not wanting to be stranded by ourselves, Eddie, Nick and I followed suit.

“Sarah, when Hammond called you, uh, why didn’t you say anything to me?”

Sarah, who was quite a few feet ahead, turned and looked at Ian for a moment.

“Because I knew you would’ve stopped me from coming.”

“I would have tied you to the bed, right.”

I rolled my eyes. “Oh my God…”

“I figured out how the animals survive without lysine.” Sarah changed the subject.

“I don’t care.” Ian rolled his eyes.

“If you look at the diets o the herbivore species that are thriving, they eat mostly agama beans, soy, anything lysine-rich. And the carnivores, well they eat the herbivores, so—”

Sarah stopped in her tracks as a dinosaur bellowed near us. She turned to us, holding a hand out.

“Wait. Wait. Shh, shh, shh.” She said as the dinosaur followed the bellow with a snort. She looked into the direction again. “Just stay there. Be quiet. Be right back.” She ran into the direction.

“Sarah, no, no!” Ian started after her.

“Just let her go, Ian.” I rolled my eyes.

“What, and uh-and let her hurt herself?” Ian glared at me before hurrying after her. The rest of us followed. The dinosaur, a Stegosaurus, bellowed again. Sarah faced us for a moment.

“Stay there!” She whispered-yelled, climbing over a log and hurrying over to the Stegosaurus. Eddie, Nick, Ian and I knelt down behind the log, watching. For a moment, Sarah dropped out a view as she started crawling on the ground, but soon after I saw a flash of red hair pop up not too far from us, in front of a baby Stegosaurus. I could see her taking pictures as Nick took out his video camera and began recording.

“Sarah, Sarah!” Ian whispered. “She’s much too close.”

“What the hell is she doing?” Nick asked.

“Too close, too close.”

We watched as Sarah slowly reached her hand out to the baby Stegosaurus, petting it. Ian rolled his eyes.

“Look, she has to touch it. She can’t not touch.” I could hear the father in Ian come out as he was getting annoyed. “She can’t not touch. Look at that. Once she sees something, she’s gotta—she’s gotta—”

“Oh, yeah, once Sarah sees something she likes, she can’t keep her hands off it, huh Ian?”

“Kerri, I swear to _God_ —”

Ian was cut off by the Stegosaurus howl.

“Wow,” Eddie, who was watching the scene intensely, said almost under his breath. “Is this even possible?”

Ian looked at him. “What?” as a response, Eddie sighed quietly. “This? What did you think you were going to document? What did you think you were going to see?”

“Animals.” Nick piped up. “Maybe, uh… big iguanas.”

Ian stared at him for a moment before looking back over at Sarah, sighing. “Fruitcakes.”

Sarah took another picture, but from where we were, we could hear the camera beginning to whir. The baby Stegosaurus, possibly scared by the sudden noise, began to howl.

“They get very angry when you run out of film.” Ian got ready to pounce over to log if need be. “Sarah! Sarah! Sarah!” he yelled to her, and Sarah began looking around frantically as adult Stegosauruses began to walk over to where she was, bellowing. “ _Sarah_!” Ian yelled her name again, hopping over the log as Sarah began to run. Nick followed him soon after, holding him back. One of the adults bellowed again as Eddie raised his dart gun, aiming it. “Shoot ‘em!” Ian told him.

“They’re just protecting their baby.” Eddie tried to reason with him. Ian glanced at me for a moment before looking back at Eddie.

“So am I.” He tried to get out of Nick’s grasp. The Stegosauruses began growling, roaring loudly at Sarah, who was doing her best to get out of the way of their tails as they swung them at her. She ducked down as one swiped at her. One ran after her, and Sarah ducked into a log for safety. The Stegosaurus slammed it’s tail into the log, and Sarah, who was sticking her head out of the other side of the log, turned around quietly.

Beside me, Eddie lowered his gun. “They’re leaving. I-I think they’re leaving.”

Ian hurried over to Sarah, and I finally took in the words Ian had said about Sarah,

_So am I_.

I put my hand over my mouth, biting back my tears as I kept thinking about it. I had it figured out then. Ian didn’t care about me in that way anymore. He obviously saw something in Sarah that he didn’t see in me anymore. Sarah was a few years younger than us; she was no doubt prettier than me, she hadn’t had any kids, so her body wasn’t ruined like mine. Her hair wasn’t grey, she didn’t have wrinkles or anything like that. A sniffle escaped me, along with a shaky breath and I saw Nick and Eddie look over at me as Ian was helping Sarah up. I couldn’t stop watching them, and not too long after, Sarah’s and my eyes met. I looked away from her quickly as Nick looked at me with some concern on his face.

“Hey, you okay?” he asked me. I nodded quickly.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.”

“You sure?” Eddie asked, putting a hand on my shoulder.

“Yes.” I nodded, looking back over at Ian and Sarah. Sarah was now looking at Ian, who seemed to be lecturing her about what she just did.

“Let’s just… let’s get back to camp.” I said quietly.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

_1996_

_A knock on my door was heard, and I opened it. Sarah stood there, her hair in a side braid, and wearing her heavy purple jacket with her jeans. I, myself, was only in my t-shirt and jeans, getting ready for a date with Alan—a date that turned out to be one of our last, but that’s not important at this time._

_It was Christmastime, about two to three days before. In her hands were two bags with presents._

_“Hey.” She said. “May I come in?”_

_I checked my clock, noticing I had only three hours before the date, and stepped to the side to let her in. “Sure.” I tried to make my tone as pleasant as possible, but I could see that Sarah noticed it wasn’t as pleasant as I was intending it to be._

_“Thanks,” she walked in, looking around. “I love your decorations.”_

_“Thanks. The kids and I put them up.” I crossed my arms. “Do you need anything, Sarah?”_

_Sarah held up the gift bags in her hands. “I came to drop these off for Rhiannon and Evan, they’re from Ian and me. Ian asked me to stop by with them, he’s busy right now. Where do you want them at?”_

_“Uh, you can just set them on the coffee table. I’ll put them under the tree later.” I crossed my arms loosely, leaning on the wall as I shut the door._

_“Okay, cool.” Sarah set the bags down. “There’s a couple in there for you as well.” She looked up at me. “Look, Kerri, I know you and I got off on the wrong foot,” she started. I raised my eyebrows._ You don’t say _, I thought. She continued. “And I know that what happened with all of us wasn’t the best way to really kick things off,” she rubbed the back of her neck. “I just, you know, hope that one day we can be friends.”_

_I raised my eyebrows. “You really want to be friends?” I stared at her._

_“Well, yeah. Look, what happened last year, I thought maybe I could explain.”_

_“Oh, you don’t-don’t have to explain anything, Sarah.” I shook my head. “You honestly don’t. I know enough of what happened to paint a picture for myself.”_

_“It wasn’t like that—” Sarah started. I crossed my arms tighter. “Honestly.”_

_“Listen, Sarah, this whole… Gesture of friendship is nice and all, especially around this time of year. But you don’t have to pretend to be my friend just because I’m married to your boyfriend.”_

_I saw Sarah thin her lips for a moment and could tell she was physically biting the side of her cheek to stop herself from saying something. Instead, I saw her take a deep breath and nod her head._

_“I understand why you feel that way, Kerri, but one day you’ll know the truth,” she started towards the door._

_“I already do,” I opened it for her. “I’ll be sure to tell Rhiannon and Evan you stopped by.”_

_Sarah walked out of my home before looking back at me. She stood, silent for a moment before clearing her throat._

_“Merry Christmas, Kerri,”_

_“Yeah. Merry Christmas.” I muttered, shutting the door as she walked off._

_1997_

We were making our way back to camp, as Nick was going through the photos on his camera.

“Wow,” Eddie breathed, looking around.

Nick was chuckling as he went through his camera. “These images are incredible. Legendary. Guys shoot their whole life, they never get stuff _half_ this good. I mean, you can give me the Pulitzer right now, today, please. Competition’s over, close the entries.” He got him a cigarette out. “I’d like to thank everybody who lost,” he started to light it, but Sarah spoke up.

“Hey, don’t light that.” She called from behind us. Nick turned to face her, walking backwards as she spoke. “Dinosaurs can pick up scents from miles away. We’re here to observe and document, not interact.” Nick began walking forward, rolling his eyes.

“Which, uh, by the way, is a scientific impossibility.” Ian added. “The, uh, Heisenberg uncertainty principle. Whatever you study, you also change.”

“Well, you know, I’ll risk it.” Sarah argued. “I’m sick of scratching around in rock and bone and making assumptions and deductions,” both Sarah and Ian climbed over a log, Ian first since he was further away from Sarah. “About the nurturing habits of animals that have been dead for 65 million years.” As she said this, Ian stopped and turned, waiting on her. “I’m sick of it, man. Then you fill my head with stories for four years,” at this, Ian sighed. “Of course I’m gonna come down here, what do you expect?”

“Uh, stories of mutilation and death. Weren’t you paying attention?”

“Oh, please, don’t treat me like I’m a grad student. I’ve worked around predators since I was 20 years old—lions, jackals, hyenas, _you_ ,”

At this, Ian laughed a bit. And it was here that I stopped listening to their conversation. I loved to hear them fight, but I didn’t particularly like hearing them get along. Was it immature? Probably, especially for a woman my age, but it just felt good to hear them not get along. The woman he left me for, and they don’t work out.

_Priceless_.

It was then when I heard Eddie.

“Where’s the fire?” He asked Nick, who was sprinting ahead of us.

“Oh, fuck. There.” I pointed, and I heard Eddie curse under his breath as I sprinted after Nick.

“Fire! Dr. Malcolm, fire! Base camp!” he yelled.

Nick beat me to the camp, grabbing a large canteen of water, pouring it over the fire. Ian and Sarah, who had caught up with us, walked over.

“No, water makes smoke billow. Use dirt.” Sarah began kicking the dirt into the fire. Ian looked confused.

“Who started a fire?” he wondered aloud.

The door to the camper open, and Kelly got out, a pan in hand. Behind her, Evan was trying to tell her something, though I couldn’t hear what he was saying. Kelly, however, looked a bit guilty and sorry.

“I just wanted to make dinner.” She said. “I wanted it ready when you guys got back. Yeah.”

“What the _hell_ did I tell you two?” I hurried over to them, and I saw Evan jumped to the side, pulling Kelly with him. “I said to get out of the camper and to _not come_ here because _of what is on this island_!”

“Oh, shit,” I heard Evan mutter as he took the pan out of Kelly’s hand.

“Yeah, oh shit, young man.” I snapped at him. “What the hell is wrong with y’all?”

“Mom, before you do anything rash—” Evan started. I cut him off.

“You want to see _rash_? I’ll show you rash!”

“Oh, fuck,” I saw Evan hurry over to the door that lead to the other part of the camper and I grabbed his wrist.

“Kerri don’t.” Ian yelled at me. I faced him, hanging on to Evan’s wrist. He was standing beside Kelly, who was wide eyed.

“As of right now, Ian Malcolm, you are the _last_ person I want to tell me how to fucking discipline _my_ children.” I faced Evan, keeping him in place. “When we get home, that PlayStation you love so much is going in my room, and I’m not giving you it until I feel as if you can get it back.”

“ _Mom_ ,” Evan started to whine. I held my finger up as Ian grabbed Kelly by her arm gently.

“I want to talk to you,” He told her, walking out of the camper with her.  I looked at Evan,

“You don’t understand what I mean about this place possibly killing you. You don’t know exactly what’s here, or where it’s at.”

“Mom, I’ve heard stories that you and Dad would tell.” Evan started to argue. I cut him off.

“And if you listened, Evan Jeffery, then you would understand why you can’t be here.” I let go of his wrist, leaning on the counter. “This isn’t like the park. This is completely different. The dinosaurs aren’t enclosed. They’re out just roaming. You don’t know what you’re going to encounter. It could be a Brachiosaurus, it could be a-a, uh,” I tried to pick a carnivore off my head before finally thinking of one. “A Velociraptor. You never know. You can never be too safe here. Now that you are here, however, you are not leaving my sights. I’m not losing my only son, you hear me?”

Evan opened his mouth to argue before nodding his head. “Yes, Mom.” He looked at his shoes before looking up at me again. “It was Kelly’s idea, though.”

“That doesn’t mean anything, Evan, and you should know that. You’re the older sibling. You should guide her to do the right thing, not to do something as foolish as this.”

He nodded again. “Yes, ma’am. I’m sorry.”

I sighed, pulling him close to me and hugging him. “I’m just so frustrated, and with you two being here, someplace extremely dangerous, isn’t exactly making it any better.”

Evan hugged me back before pulling away. “Mom, listen. I’m seventeen years old, I’ll be fine.”

“Yeah, well, your uncle was in his twenties when he was killed. He said the same thing to your grandmother before going off to war.” I raised my eyebrows. Evan bit his lip before changing the subject.

“So, is Sarah here?”

I rolled my eyes. “Yes, she’s here.” I nodded. “She’s out there with your father.”

“Cool.” Evan nodded. “Can I go say hi to her?”

“If you want to.” I nodded again. Evan walked out of the camper.

“…What do you want to do? Lock her up for curiosity?” I heard Sarah argue with Ian as she walked over to one of the cars, putting the canteen back. “Where do you think she gets it?”

“Thank you, Sarah,” Kelly smiled a bit.

“Hey, Sarah,” Evan greeted her. Sarah smiled at him.

“Hey, Evan.” She looked at Ian. “See, she’s not the only one who’s curious. I think it’s a good thing.”

“Don’t start the teaming up thing about this.” Ian argued as Sarah walked over to him. “Out of the conversation. Please. Really. Eddie!” he looked over at Eddie as Sarah looked at the kids.

“You came all that way in this trailer?” she asked them. Evan had made his way over to his sister, who was sitting on the hood of the car. In his hand, Ian had the satellite phone.

“Yeah.” Kelly answered. Ian continued to bitch towards Eddie.

“Why in the hell doesn’t this thing ever work?”

“You know, it’s not a landline.” Eddie looked at him. “Y-Y-You’re not in a phone booth. You gotta wait for a decent signal.”

“Signal.” Ian grumbled, slamming the phone back down on the receiver a couple of times. Eddie looked at him.

“Violence and technology, not good bedfellows.”

Sarah, who had made her way back over to the car where Nick and Eddie were, spoke. “The kind of documentation Hammond wants puts you and your equipment in the field as close to the animals as is safely possible.”

“Yeah, that’s a great idea.” Ian grabbed Kelly’s hand, helping her off the hood of the car. “And while you’re at it, why don’t you smear yourself in a little sheep’s blood?” He walked over to them as Evan walked back over to me. “Eddie, uh, is there any reason to think that the radio in the trailer might work? Don’t tease me, I don’t wanna get my hopes up.”

“If you feel qualified at all, you might try flicking the switch to “on”.” Eddie told him. I laughed quietly.

“Okay, listen, listen. I’m taking my daughter and my son outta here. Uh, anybody who wants to come with me,” Ian glanced over at me. “This is your last chance to get out.”

Sarah looked at Eddie. “So, listen, when you’re out in the field, nothing we can do leave any room for people to say that our findings are—”

“Nick,” Ian looked at him. “If you’re staying, I’d be happy to deliver a letter to your wife or your loved one. Give you a chance to say good-bye to her. Okay?” he placed a hand on his shoulder, while Nick just looked at him.

“…smells blood, you’re dead—” Sarah continued her talk.

“Eddie,” Ian walked over to Eddie. “Got any personal effects of any kind? You know, least I can do. I’ll be in there.” He started towards the trailer, Kelly in tow.

“Seal all our food in plastic bags,” Sarah kept advising, setting her bag down. “Our presence needs to be _one hundred percent antiseptic_.” She looked at Ian. “If we so much as bend a blade of grass—”

“Excuse me.” Ian lightly nudged me to the side as he and Kelly walked into the camper. 


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

_1996_

_“Merry Christmas.” I smiled at Rhiannon and Evan as they both stumbled out of their rooms, still half asleep._

_“God, Mom, how are you so cheery?” Evan grumbled._

_“Yeah, Mom, it’s, uh, eight in the morning.” Rhiannon added. I laughed a bit, holding my cup of coffee._

_“It’s Christmas, you know how much I love Christmas.” I made up an excuse. Rhiannon raised an eyebrow at me, smirking a bit. That’s something else she inherited from her father._

_“Is it just because it’s Christmas or did something happen last night?”_

_“Uh, excuse me?” I raised my eyebrows at her, cocking my head a bit. Evan grimaced._

_“Ew, Mom, what the fu—”_

_I snapped my fingers, pointing at him directly after. “Language.”_

_Evan grumbled about being sixteen, he can say what he wants, and I tried my best to not get onto him for it. It was Christmas, after all. Rhiannon kept watching me, a smirk still evident on her face, but—because she was intelligent—changed the subject._

_“So, uh, what time are Dad, Sarah and Kelly coming over?” she asked._

_“Don’t know, they didn’t quote a time. Don’t open their presents until they get here though.”_

_She nodded. “Got it.”_

_I turned around, starting to make breakfast for them. I heard Evan grab a present and turned on my heel, making him stare at me wide-eyed. He had a big box in his hands—which was his, it was his PlayStation he had been asking for all year along with a few games I knew he’d enjoy. “Ah, ah, ah, put it down. After breakfast.”_

_“But Mom—”_

_“After breakfast. Trust me, you’ll be glad you waited.”_

_Evan grumbled again, setting the present down back in its place. He walked over to the couch, flopping onto it face first and just laying there, as if he were defeated. Rhiannon looked at me, leaning in close so she could whisper._

_“Was it that paleontologist guy?” She probed, a grin on her face. I looked at her for a moment before looking at the eggs and bacon in front of me._

_“I don’t know what you’re talking about, kiddo.”_

_“Mom, come on, tell me. Please? I’m not a child anymore, you know.”_

_I looked at her, raising my eyebrows. “I understand that, Rhiannon, but it’s awkward talking about that kind of stuff with you.”_

_“Aha, so you_ did _have sex!” Rhiannon exclaimed, louder than I would have cared for her to._

_“Shh!” I hissed at her, a blush creeping on my face. “If you_ must _know, yes, we did—”_

_“—Disgusting—” Evan’s muffled voice came from the couch._

_“But this is still none of your business. Okay?” I raised my eyebrows at my daughter, who shifted her weight from her left foot to her right foot. After probing me, I watched as her face fell. “What’s wrong?”_

_“Well… Does this mean that you and Dad are officially over? Like old news?”_

_I sighed, making Evan’s plate. His was easiest. The boy loved over easy eggs, much like I did. Rhiannon liked hers over medium. “I don’t know, Rhiannon.”_

_“Mom, it isn’t like I don’t like Alan. I do, I really do. He’s pretty cool. But he just isn’t…” she trailed off._

_“He isn’t your father.” I finished for her._

_Rhiannon swallowed hard. “Yeah. I mean, after, uh, you two got remarried I-I thought that, uh…”_

_“That we would have lasted?”_

_“Yeah.” Her voice was quiet, and I put my arm around her._

_“Look, I know this is hard for you two to accept, but… It’s hard for me, too. I know it may not seem like it, that I moved on from your father like it was nothing but… believe me. Alan and I have a great relationship, but I feel as if it may not last much longer.”_

_“Why not?”_

_I shrugged. “Well, I think he still has feelings for Ellie. And I don’t want to feel as if I would be… a last resort, I guess. I know it isn’t that way, but that’s how I would feel.”_

_“Wait.” Evan piped up. Rhiannon and I looked at him. “You’re dating Alan?_ Alan Grant _Alan? And you didn’t tell me?” He looked as if I had stabbed him in the back. I chuckled a bit._

_“I was going to whenever I felt it was the right time.”_

_“No, no, no. Mom, you don’t understand. This is_ Alan Grant _we’re talking about here. I’ve been a fan of him ever since I was a kid—”_

_“Evan, you’re sixteen. You’re still a kid.” I corrected him. Evan rolled his eyes._

_“Yeah, sure, whatever. But_ Mom _, you know how big of a fan I am.”_

_I chuckled a bit. “I’ll have him come over one night for dinner, how does that sound?”_

_“Fucking fantastic.”_

_“Language.”_

_1997_

“Dad are you mad?” Kelly asked as she made her way into the trailer. Evan and I followed behind Kelly, me letting Evan in first. I was in next, and Ian was last.

“No, I’m not. I’m _furious_.” Ian slammed the door behind him. I jumped a bit, looking at him. Ian glanced at me before looking around the trailer. “What is this?” he looked at Kelly. “This looks like your room.”

“I was gonna clean it up.” Kelly stated.

“ _Right now_!” Ian snapped. He looked over at Evan. “Some of this your mess too?”

“No, not really.” Evan shook his head.

“Help your sister clean it up anyway.”

“Dad—”

“Do what I say!”

“Ian, really,” I narrowed my eyes at him. “Watch it.”

“Hey, you were the one who _knew_ they were going to-going to, uh, be here.” My husband snapped at me. I stared at him.

“Oh, bullshit, Ian,” I snapped back, and I could hear Evan mutter, “Oh, here we go,” under his breath. “I told them to get out of the camper and I watched them leave it.”

“Uh, yeah, but you didn’t stick around to be sure that-that they actually stayed gone, Kerri!”

“Oh, so this is my fault, is that it?” I rolled my eyes. “Everything’s always my fault, right? Never your fault? You know, if you _cared_ more about your kids—”

“Kerri, goddammit, _don’t go there_ —!”

“Why, can’t handle the truth, Ian?” I snapped at him. Instead of retorting back, like he seemed to start to do, Ian instead went to the radio on the side of the camper, dropping the argument. He stared at it. “What is this? Eddie?” he raised his voice. “ _Eddie_!”

As he did so, Sarah made her way into the camper. Ian continued to bitch.

“There’s a hundred switches!”

“Ian don’t be mad.” Sarah started, grabbing his arm for a second before helping Kelly and Evan clean up. I was gonna call you in a day or two to let you know where I was. I always do, don’t I?” At this question, Ian just hung his head and sighed. “Come on, I’m the best kind of girlfriend there is; one who travels a lot. You like that, right?” She asked as Ian faced her. I rolled my eyes, helping the kids clean up and trying to ignore them. I grabbed a plastic baggy, picking up some trash and placing it inside. “You love your independence.” I handed Sarah another bag, and she opened it.

“Well, I’ve gotten used to being apart, but that doesn’t mean that’s how I want to, uh, live.” Ian said. I rolled my eyes. You had it, dude, and you tossed that out the window. Ian looked at both Kelly and Evan. “K-Kelly, Evan, this is, um, tall talk.”

“I’m seventeen. In case you forgot.” Evan rolled his eyes.

“Just for a minute,” Ian ushered Evan and Kelly off to the side. Kelly looked at her older brother.

“It’s like a height restriction at an amusement park.” She joked dryly. Sarah bent down, helping me pick up crumbs off the floor.

“If you wanted to rescue me from something, why didn’t you bail me out of that fund-raiser at the museum three weeks ago like you said you would?” She looked at Ian, who was leaning on one of the computers. I raised my eyebrows at him before glancing at Sarah. Ian looked at me for a moment and I quickly went back to what I was doing.

Trouble in paradise, you two?

“Uh, this is a s-slightly different situation.” Ian responded.

“Or-or why not rescue me from that dinner with your parents that you never showed up for? Why not rescue me when I really need it— _actually_ be there when you say you will? You know, I have made a career out of waiting for you.”

Oh, yes, definitely trouble in paradise. Was I a bitch for thinking this was great? Probably. But this was _just fucking great_. I loved it.

“You know,” Kelly spoke up. “Sarah has a pretty good poi—”

Ian looked at his youngest daughter. “It’s so important to your future that you not finish that sentence.” He had her set the trashcan down. “Please, give us privacy. Outside!” He glanced at Evan. “Both of you.”

“I didn’t even say anything!” Evan argued.

“Outside.” Ian looked at me. “That means you too.”

“Excuse me?” I looked at him.

“This is between Sarah and myself, this doesn’t concern you, Kerri.”

I heard my son mumble something about everyone hating the middle child before walking to the door with Kelly.

“Fine. Then you two can pick this shit up yourselves.” I dumped my bag of crumbs out onto the floor of the camper, storming over to the door where the kids where. I heard Ian sigh and mutter under his breath. Sarah stood, walking over to him.

“Ian, come on. Come on, look.” She had him sit down. The kids and I stopped, listening in. “I love that you rode in on a white horse. I really do. It’s very touching, very dramatic,” she knelt in front of him. “I just need you to show up in a cab every once in a while, too.”

“Come on, let’s go,” I told the kids. Kelly opened the door and began to walk out.

“K-Kelly, what are you doing?” I heard Ian asked. I rolled my eyes. “No, no, no! Hey, hey, hey! Don’t go out there. It’s not safe! Stay in here. Come back, shut the door.”

Kelly did so, and the three of us stayed inside the camper. Sarah stood.

“Okay, I know what I’m doing.” She said. “Uh, you guys should definitely go.” She looked at Ian sincerely. “But I’m gonna stay. I love you. I just don’t need you right now.”

Ian stood. “I’ll tell you what you need: uh, a good antipsychotic.”

“I’ll be back in five or six days,” Sarah argued.

“No, you’ll be back in five or six _pieces_.”

“What bothers you is that I’m not afraid of this place and _you are_.”

“Of course I am, that’s the whole thing.”

Rumbling was heard and Kelly, who walked over to the window as Ian and Sarah were arguing, stood up straight and looked over at us.

“Hey, what’s that sound?” She asked. All I could think of was worst case scenario—a T. rex or something along those lines, but as Ian and I walked over to the window and looked out, we saw what seemed to be an army of helicopters coming towards the island.

“This is perfect. You two, come here,” Ian grabbed his kids by their hands, walking out of the camper with them. Once outside, I watched him let go of Evan and try to wave the helicopters over to where we were. “Here we go. I’m gonna get you both outta here on one of those right now. Hello! Over here!”

As he was talking, Sarah and I walked over to where he was, watching as Ian was futilely waving the helicopters over here. I could hear Nick taking pictures of the sight as Eddie was looking with his binoculars.

“I don’t get that,” he said quietly, but then louder he said, “It says InGen on the-on the side of that chopper!”

Ian looked back at him, and Kelly followed suit soon after. Eddie continued, confused as the rest of us.

“I don’t get that. Why would Hammond send two teams?”

Ian, still holding on to Kelly, made his way over to Eddie, taking the binoculars.

“Cut the umbilical, Dad!” Kelly yelled at him. Sarah and I followed suit.

“Doesn’t he trust us?” Sarah snapped. “We haven’t even started.”

I could tell, however, that these helicopters were bringing in huge trucks. Almost every single one of the choppers had a truck dangling down from it by four ropes tied together.

“Sarah, uh, I don’t think Hammond would do something like this,” I said quietly.


End file.
